


Kindness is Quiet

by GrinningJarvey



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Child Neglect, Fluff, Gen, Greg gives the best hugs
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-25
Updated: 2020-08-25
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:01:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26097550
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GrinningJarvey/pseuds/GrinningJarvey
Summary: A story with many heroes, large and small.  In which Gregory Goyle accidentally saves the world one healing hug at a time, Harry Potter is viciously protective of his friends, and Severus Snape is at once the epitome of honor, sacrifice, duty, and general assholery.
Relationships: Gregory Goyle & Harry Potter, Gregory Goyle & Vincent Crabbe
Kudos: 9





	Kindness is Quiet

Most people take one look at Gregory Goyle and immediately decide that he is simply a carbon copy of his father. They look awfully similar. They don’t do much talking. Most people think Gregory Goyle and his father are a pair of brutes. Most people never think about Mrs. Goyle at all. That’s a mistake.

Mrs. Goyle is very sick. Mr. Goyle spends almost all his time at work trying desperately to keep their home stocked with life-saving potions. Mr. Goyle leaves early and comes home late. Gregory doesn’t know what his father’s face looks like without the constantly growing patina of exhaustion. Yet, despite all this, Mr. Goyle always makes time to show his affection to the both of them. He pats Gregory on the shoulder and ruffles his hair every day. He brings home Mrs. Goyle’s favorite sweets (ice mice) every time Honeydukes has a sale regardless of whether he had any business in Hogsmeade at all. He never forgets a birthday or an anniversary. He never breaks a promise. Mr. Goyle teaches his son devotion. Mr. Goyle teaches his son how to show care through his actions. They both have trouble with words.

Gregory and Mrs. Goyle both know they are cherished, but the time Mr. Goyle spends at home is…limited. This means that almost every lesson Gregory knows, he learned from his mother. Gregory knows that his mother hurts all the time. That she gets tired easily. He also knows that if they take their time, if they take lots of breaks, the two can make it all the way down the lane to the pond to feed the grindylows and pet the wild gnomes. He knows that these small expeditions, requiring such immense effort on his mother’s part, bring her equally immense joy. The first lesson Gregory learns from (for) his mother is patience.

Most people cannot pet wild gnomes without being bitten. Most people are impatient. Gregory and his mother always need a break when they reach the pond before they are ready to interact with the creatures. So the first thing they always do is watch. This is how Gregory knows which gnomes start fights with the others. Which gnomes are sneaky or cruel. This is how Gregory knows which gnomes to throw plums towards, and which ones he can feed by hand. He learns that the first thing he must do in any situation is always to watch and listen carefully. The second lesson Gregory learns from (for) his mother is observation.

Gregory was born strong and every day he gets stronger. He holds his mother’s delicate hands carefully. He pets the gnomes with just one finger. The third lesson Gregory learns from (for) his mother is gentleness.

Soon enough he is introduced to the children who will join him at Hogwarts in a few years time. They are bright and loud and, especially compared to Gregory who always waits and watches and listens first, they are fast. Fast thinking and fast-talking, but also reacting fast to little hurts. Losing tempers and making regrets and apologies. Hurting feelings and being hurt. Gregory doesn’t understand them. They call him stupid, but none of them have learned the lesson of patience. Pansy Parkinson is mean to him for sport. Daphne Greengrass ignores him. But soon enough Draco defends him with words and Gregory protects Draco from the more…physical… consequences of Draco’s quick tongue and quick temper. Gregory thinks Draco would be better protected still if he just learned patience, but he is happy to have a friend. He tells his mother everything about the other children. She listens carefully (just the way she taught him to) and she tells him something important. Something Gregory is pretty sure is a secret because it is obvious none of the other children have learned this lesson. “You can’t ever take meanness back, Gregory-dear. You can regret it, you can try to make up for it, but you can’t ever take it back. But Gregory, you never need to take back kindness. And if you put enough kindness out into the world, eventually it comes back to you.”

This is the most important and the last of his mother’s lessons. She passes away on a Tuesday three weeks later and Gregory and his father are distraught. But Mr. Goyle has always known devotion and he still has Gregory to care for. And Gregory has learned all his lessons well. It takes time, but they pull themselves back together piece by piece. Gregory’s world feels empty and gray scale, but he is trying.

When Gregory returns to the other children after the traditional grieving period has ended there is a new boy. His name is Vincent and he is always angry. He always wants to fight. One day Gregory, who still watches and listens carefully, sees Mr. Crabbe slap Vincent right across the face and Gregory thinks he knows why Vincent is always angry. Gregory looks at Vincent and thinks ‘this is a boy who needs kindness’. Gregory makes a point to always hug Vincent goodbye when it is time to return home regardless of whether they have been fighting. He makes a point to always smile hello and pat Vincent on the shoulder. He saves extra dessert when Vincent is late. He shows care in all the ways his father taught him. It takes weeks, but Gregory knows patience, and eventually Vincent returns the kindness Gregory has been putting out. The others make jokes about Gregory “taming the beast” but, soon enough, Vincent becomes the best friend Gregory has ever had. One day, months later, Gregory realizes he no longer remembers when he stopped living in gray scale.

He grows up, becomes Greg instead of Gregory-dear. He starts attending galas with his father. Meets more and more children. And everywhere he goes Greg watches and listens first. He is gentle. He puts kindness out into the world in little shows of caring, just as both of his parents taught him. Most people take one look at Greg and think he’s a stupid brute. Most people don’t have the patience to recognize kindness when it is quiet.


End file.
